Southern Miss running back Jalen Richard (30) runs the ball on Saturday during the Golden Eagles' game against UAB at M.M. Roberts Stadium.

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Jalen Richard might have been a late addition to Southern Miss' 2012 signing class, but the running back has had arguably the biggest impact on the football of any of the Golden Eagles' first-year players.

The 5-foot-10, 200-pound freshman from Alexandria, La., tops the team in average all-purpose yards (73.9 yards per game) and kickoff return average (27.9 yards per return) and leads all running backs with four touchdowns.

He ranks second in rushing (299 yards) and third in scoring (24 points) and total all-purpose yards (517 yards), and that's despite missing two, early-season games ...